Batting

Worcester, Mass. – Lauren Mackey hit a homerun in the opener and Brenna Foley was excellent in the circle in the nightcap and Clark University earned a split with New England Women's And Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) softball action on Saturday afternoon.

How It Happened In Game 1:Jacqueline DeFusco hit Emerson's third homerun of the opener to lead off the sixth inning and the visiting Lions collected the one run victory.

Emerson took a 1-0 lead in the first when Kallista Leonardos scored on wild pitch.

Clark answered back in the bottom of the frame when Mackey blasted a two-run homerun to centerfield – her third in the last five games and the eighth of her career.

The Lions then used the longball to first tie and then move back in front. First Leonardos smacked a solo shot to center in the third inning to even the score and then Molly Goldstein launched a two-run shot to left field to put Emerson back ahead, 4-2.

Clark eventually evened the score in the fifth when Taylor Erickson (Natick, Mass.) drove in Olivia Barksdale (Fort Washington, Md.) with a single and then Christina Kopacz (North Grosvenordale, Mass.) pushed Erickson home with a single to left.

Even after DeFusco hit the go ahead homerun in the sixth for the Lions, the Scarlet and White had runners on first and second with two outs in the seventh after Mackey singled and Kopacz walked. Casey Tsamis, however, was able to get Sarah Woods (Littleton, Mass.) to fly out to center to end the game and collect her first save of the season.

How It Happened In Game 2:
Tsamis and Foley were locked in a pitcher's duel in the opener and the teams were scoreless heading into the fifth inning.

Clark finally broke the scoreless tie when they recorded both of their runs in the bottom of the frame on an Erickson RBI single to left and a Kaitlyn DeBlois (Turner, Maine) run-scoring double.

The Cougars had a chance to add to their lead in the sixth when Kayleigh McHugh (Pepperell, Mass.) led off the inning with a double but the Scarlet and White failed to bring her home.

Emerson sliced the Cougar lead in half when Marisa DiFranco walked and came around to score on a Leonardos RBI single.

Clark then turned to Woods to close out the contest, as she retired two batters via the strikeout and then got the final out by the way of groundout to first to collect the save.

Up Next: Clark will be back in action on Sunday when they visit Babson College for a 12:00 p.m. doubleheader.